


that's not so bad

by roboboops



Category: DragonFable (Video Games)
Genre: Bittersweet Ending, F/M, Love Confessions, Unresolved Romantic Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-26
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-28 01:16:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17173094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roboboops/pseuds/roboboops
Summary: Catching feelings isn't the best thing that's happened to Tomix. Especially since the girl he likes isn't looking for a relationship.





	that's not so bad

**Author's Note:**

> this was one of my first public fics i published on my old tumblr :D if its crappy sorry in advance. fem!hero btw

Contrary to popular belief, the white-haired soulweaver isn't the most well-versed in the art of flirting, or love for that matter. People expect him to know how to sweep a girl off her feet but the best he can do is maybe pat her on the head. He did know that he had a somewhat handsome face with attractive features that people, namely Aegis, praise at times but that was probably the only asset he had in wooing someone. Affection was never his forte, but that didn't bother him. He knew it wasn't his fault that he didn't know how to love, being that he was never really loved in the first place. And who needs it when you're busy killing spiders twice your size?

But now, Tomix finds himself at a loss for what to do. For the first time he actually wants to learn how to show someone that he loves them, and this someone happens to be someone that stuck by him way too often: the Hero.

He never thought that of all the people that he could like, his heart chose the Hero. It could've been Riadne. That sounds like a way more plausible option, but the Hero? She was the last person that he would ever expect -- but in a strange way, he likes it. He likes this whole thing; this idea of him being with her. He likes how alive he feels every time she leans on his back after a nasty fight. He likes how she nestles her head on the crook of his neck when they're taking shifts on a nightwatch in Ravenloss. He likes how his heart just wrenches at the sight of her, and the pain of the possibility that they will never be an item hurts and excites him at the same time, but he knew it was all over when he began to notice the little things, too. Like how she smiles when she thinks she's about to lose a duel, how she licks the old, poorly treated cuts on her hands that always reopen when she grips her sword too tightly, how hearty her laughter is when she just barely makes it out of the fight alive, how she has the ability to completely assure him with a single nod in his direction...he just liked her. That was all he knew at the time. So he asked her about what she thought of dating.

When she heard the question, she stopped chewing on her sandwich and her eyes widened for a moment as she turned to Tomix. For a second the Hero looked hopeful, but she eventually pouts and looks away from him. Tomix wishes that her look of hopefulness was a sign for something, but he brushed off the thought quickly.

"A romantic relationship...," the Hero trails off and scoffs. "It's not that I don't like the idea of it, I just...don't want to be in one. If that makes any sense."

Tomix doesn't want to acknowledge the fact that his heart just broke but he pressed on with a little hope left.

"What do you mean?", he asked. "Are you just not into that sort of thing or?"

"I just...", she starts, "I wouldn't be a very good girlfriend. I'm always off travelling. I'm basically a pilgrim and it would suck if I knew I was always leaving someone behind."

She leans forward to rests her chin on her hand and she takes time to think. Her face is troubled, with her brows knit together and her lips pouting ever so slightly. The painful awkwardness of the silence drives Tomix to cough and squirm. Meanwhile, the Hero continues to look straight ahead.

"Given...", she starts, staring off into the distance searching for the right words, "Given my duty as Lore's hero, I just can't. I can't afford to settle down with someone because I always have to leave. I wish I had the privilege to stay with someone I love, but the thought of sacrificing my duty for one person is just...iffy for me."

She laughs and turns to Tomix. He flinches but he stares back at her.

"This is gonna sound really cheesy, but when I love someone, I'll always love them with the 'entirety of my being' or whatever the romantics say. If I began dating then I'd feel obligated to stay with that person for as long as I can, and that'll drive me to forget my responsibilites as, well, a hero."

She takes the last bite of her sandwich, stands up, and stretches her back.

"I can never bring myself to do it," she says, staring ahead. "I've loved countless people and you have no idea how much strength it took for me to restrain myself. If you ask me, the battles of the self can be tougher than my battles with, well, my sword."

Tomix can't help but stare. He didn't expect the Hero to have valuable insights on the topic. He thought that she'd dismiss it with a laugh or maybe a joke, but it went to a completely different direction. He's never seen this side of her, in which she's just completely...vulnerable. No one ever sees the Hero of Lore as vulnerable, but Tomix figured that that's just what love does to a person; it finds its way into the depths of your chest and just tugs on its strings endlessly. It's painful, and it changes you. The soulweaver scratches his head, nervous on how to continue the conversation. Luckily the Hero sits back down. 

"Well, there's your answer.", she sighs. "I still have the ability to love, don't get me wrong. I just try not to pursue the person since, if we commit to each other, we'll just end up longing for each other until we die. And it hurts. It'll hurt me knowing that there is someone waiting for me."

Her expression saddens as she stares at him, searching his face for a bit. She smiles.

"No matter how hard it'll be for me," she says, "I will never put that burden on someone I love."

He could've kissed her. He could've just leaned in and kissed her right then and there. It was the perfect time to do it; she had just poured her heart out to him, their faces were just how many inches apart, and she just looked like she needed it. He could've kissed her, but he didn't. He didn't want to do that to her, so instead he pulls her in for a hug.

"I'm sorry I brought it up," he whispers. "I never thought that you...you know."

She doesn't hug back for a bit, but her hands slowly find their way to his back.

"I'm really sorry," she mutters. "I'm...not usually like...this." 

"I know.", Tomix replied. "I know, but it's okay."

But he was selfish, and he knew that. 

He still couldn't help himself. 

"I think I'm in love with you.", he whispers, holding her tightly in his arms. 

The world stops for a minute. Tomix feels the tiniest pinch of regret, but he mostly felt relieved. The burden of it all lifted for a moment, and he smiles. The Hero stiffens in his arms and he hears her gasp, then sigh. A sigh of relief, he hopes. She continues to chuckle lightheartedly, as if she didn't exactly mind his bold statement. 

She never gave an answer. She never said that she loved him back, but Tomix was content. He knew she had responsibilities and he didn't want to stop her from being the great Hero that she was.

All Tomix knew was that as long as the Hero was happy, then he was happy too. And maybe that isn't so bad.


End file.
